HYDERABAD: The Telangana government’s decision to fill posts in vice-chancellors to six universities in the state came for sharp criticism from the High Court.
On Monday, the government issued GOs to fill the vacant posts of V-Cs in the six state universities attracting the criticism of the High Court. A case is pending in the High Court over appointment of V-Cs. Expressing displeasure over the decision of the government tp appoint V-Cs, a division bench of the High Court on Monday reserved its orders in petitions filed challenging the appointment of V-Cs in the state.
‘’It appears that the impugned GOs and amending the Act is paving way for even MPs, MLAs and even the board members of panchayat defeated in elections to be appointed as V-Cs,’’ the bench observed.
The bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Dilip B Bhosale and Justice A V Sesha Sai was dealing with batch of petitions filed by Dr D Manohar Rao, a retired professor of Osmania University, and others against the state government’s action in amending the AP Universities Act, 1991 and Acts of other Universities existing in the state to make appointments of VCs to universities directly by the government, without consulting the governor.
The petitioners complained that the state was amending University Acts to take away the autonomy of the varsities in choosing their VCs. They submitted that the government has vested the power of appointing a chancellor by amending the statutory provisions of the UGC regulations. Counsel S Sriram, appearing for one of the petitioners, brought to the notice of the bench that the government has issued GOs on Monday appointing V-Cs to universities in the state.
Reacting to the submissions of the counsel, Justice Bhosale pointed out why the government has not waited for another two or three days when it had kept pending the posts vacant for the past two years? “You could not have done this”, the bench said while expressing its displeasure with the decision of the government.
Defending the action of the state, J Ramachandra Rao, additional advocate general of Telangana, submitted that earlier the government had given an assurance that no appointment will be made for three days and as those days have been completed it has appointed the V-Cs. All the appointments will be subject to the outcome of the case, he added.
The AAG said there was tremendous compulsion for appointing the VCs as the administration in the varsities was being affected.
Earlier, the petitioner counsel submitted that the government has brought the amendment to the Acts through a GO issued on Sept 11, 2015 claiming that it had amended the provisions under Section 101 of the AP Reorganisation Act 2014 after adapting the AP Universities Act, 1991. The UGC has fixed certain qualifications to the professors who can be appointed as vice chancellors, but the new amendment envisages that people having administrative experience may also be appointed as VCs, which is nothing but intent to politicise the appointments of VCs and this will pave way for IAS officers and even section officers of the Secretariat to become VCs, he argued.